Jake Peavy pitched allowed one run in his first outing this spring.
(Photo courtesy of NESN)

Ben WhiteheadContributing Writer

Jake Peavy last made headlines for lacerating his hand with a fishing knife. The injury wasn't extreme, but Peavy and the Red Sox medical staff wanted to ensure he didn't further the damage by getting an infection.

Thus, the Duck Boat-touting pitcher made his spring debut today, going three innings and allowing one run on two hits. He walked two and struck out two, leaving the game after walking a batter in the fourth when he reached his pitch limit. That runner came around to score the lone run off Peavy.

After his outing, Peavy felt good about his return and joked with reporters, "I'm going to stay away from knives, and I'll see you on Opening Day."

The Red Sox defeated the Twins, 4-3, and have quietly begun building some steam. Boston has won four of its last five Spring Training games and has seen positive results from many of its starters - both pitchers and position players.

Peavy, who is in his first Spring Training with the Red Sox, is working on a split-finger fast ball. He gave a nod to Koji Uehara for helping him with the pitch in camp.

"That pitch is Koji Uehara," said Peavy. "That is him. If he doesn't have that pitch, he's not him. I thought to myself, 'Why wouldn't I try?' So that's where it came from.

"He showed me how to hold it. Other than that, there’s not much you can do ... It’s not going to be a Koji Uehara split-finger."

We'll see how the splitter comes along, but in the meantime, it's great to see Peavy getting healthy and becoming a stabilizing force in the Sox rotation.

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